Posted on Aug 7, 2023
New charges against Trump focus on lies. Scholars see an authoritarian playbook
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https://www.npr.org/2023/08/07/ [login to see] /new-charges-against-trump-focus-on-lies-scholars-see-an-authoritarian-playbook
The latest federal case against Donald Trump is putting a spotlight on the role of false and baseless claims in his presidency. The indictment alleges that the former president and his co-conspirators used lies for the criminal purpose of overturning the 2020 election. For some scholars of history, its forensic look at how speech underpinned an alleged conspiracy to illegally retain power helps to situate Trump into larger historical patterns.
"All authoritarian leaders have cults of personality," said Ruth Ben-Ghiat, professor of history at New York University and author of Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present. "Meaning, they propose themselves as all-powerful, as the only solution possible to the nation's ills. 'I alone can fix it.' "
The latest federal case against Donald Trump is putting a spotlight on the role of false and baseless claims in his presidency. The indictment alleges that the former president and his co-conspirators used lies for the criminal purpose of overturning the 2020 election. For some scholars of history, its forensic look at how speech underpinned an alleged conspiracy to illegally retain power helps to situate Trump into larger historical patterns.
"All authoritarian leaders have cults of personality," said Ruth Ben-Ghiat, professor of history at New York University and author of Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present. "Meaning, they propose themselves as all-powerful, as the only solution possible to the nation's ills. 'I alone can fix it.' "
New charges against Trump focus on lies. Scholars see an authoritarian playbook
Posted from npr.org
Donald Trump
New York University
Reading
Elections
Yale University
Posted >1 y ago
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The old saying goes "In for a Penny, in for a a Pound," or something like that. He is still throwing out the same old BS.
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From article: "The case will likely focus on statements that Trump and co-conspirators allegedly made in the weeks between the 2020 election and the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6th."
The charges are not about Trump specifically inciting January 6th as a riot (which would be harder to prove in court). The conspiracy charges are about a group effort to overturn an election by violating established rules.
The charges are not about Trump specifically inciting January 6th as a riot (which would be harder to prove in court). The conspiracy charges are about a group effort to overturn an election by violating established rules.
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